Apparatus for cleaning printers&#39; rollers.



' aw QMM S. ORUMI". APPARATUS FOR CLEANING PRINTE OLLBRS.

A'PPLIUATION pump JUNE 22,

1 Q5840 Patented Apr. 8, 1913.

TE sA'rps A'rn Barnum. carrier, or new YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR' re rnr:CRUMP conrranr, or new YORK, n. Y., A qoaroaarron or NEW roux.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 8,1913.

Application filed June 22, 1912. Serial No. 705,189.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL GRUMP, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of New York city, in the county of New York and State of NewYork, have invented certain new and useful Improvements 1n Apparatus forCleaning Printers Rollers, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in 1Q apparatus for cleaningprinters rollers, and .bypreference I embody my invention in a printingpress as an attachment thereto so as to enable the effectual automaticcleaning or washing of the ink distributing and form rollers, as well asthe form itself when de-' sired, while'the same are on the press anddriiien by the press operating means. E%y invention is based on theconception of c caning all of a train of rollers of a press 3Q whilethey are on the press and whether they be many or few," simultaneously,quickly effectually and with the leastpos sible added expense to thecost of manufecturing the press. Sid The operation or method ofutilizing my invention is based on t e principleof transferring thecolor or int from one roller to another in series through the train ofrollers .to a final draw-off roller, preferably of 80 printers rollercomposition, from which the color is removed by a scraper heldagainstthe same. The roller to which. the scraper is applied beingconstantly deprived of ink, will become the point of delivery for theink from all the other rollers in the train, and gradually and in analmost incredibly short time all the ink on the rollers will transfer tosaid final roller and be removed, all of the rollers on the pressbecoming thoroughly cleansed and also dried of the kerosene or othersolvent which I will pour on the rollers durin the cleansing operationfor, softening the ink. When the form rollers are left in contact withthe form during the cleansing operation, the latter, then being a partof the train of transfer surfaces, will also become effectually cleaned,the ink therefrom transferring to the rollers which are constantly drawnfrom by the roller to which the scraper is applied.

My invention pertains more particularly to a novel scraper blade to beapplied to the draw-off roller and to special means for supportin andcoacting with the blade, and it genera 1y speaking my invention residesin certain improvements hereinafter described on the apparatus shown inLetters Patent of the United States heretofore granted to me, to-wit,Nos. 954,379 dated April 5, 1910 and 976,155 dated November 22, 1910.

I have preferably used printers roller composition in the manufacture ofthe drawofi' roller to which the scraper-blade is applied, and I havefound that it is almost printers roller composition roller or otheryielding roller suitable for the purpose, having an exactly true surfacethroughout, but that, on the contrary, even with the exercise ofgreat'care in their production, the drawoff rollers have possessedundulations hardly perceptible to the eye, but which prevented theheretofore known scraper blades from removing all of the ink and solventtherefrom. Unless al'loftheink and solvent are'75 removed from thedraw-off roller during the cleansing operation, the rollers of the pressdo not become cleaned to the extent demanded. I have, therefore, in thepresent invention sought te provide a new construction of scraper to beapplied to the draw-off roller, and one which, regardless of theundulations present in the roller, will effectually remove all of theink and solvent therefrom, thus enabling the thorough'cleansing of therollf ers of the press.

The invention will be fully understood from, the detailed descriptionhereinafter presented, reference being had to the accompanying drawing,in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section through a portion of aprinting press equipped with the features of my inventionyFig. 2 is avertical transverse section through a rock-shaft or roller carryingthescraper-blade of my invention and equlppcd with means for enabling theproper controlf and operation of the same, and Fig. 3 is frontelevation, partly broken away,'of the roller shown in Fig. 2 and partscarried thereby.

In the drawings, 10 designates this usual form-cylinder, 11 theimpression-cylinder, 12 the ink-font, 14 composition form-inkingrollers, 15 distributing rollers, 16 composi- 1 tion rollers in thetrain of said distributing rollers, and 17 an oscillatory roller ofusual character for transferringthe ink from the font 12 to one of saidrollers 15, all of the rollers mentioned, as well as the form cylin- 1der 1% and. liTlPTQSSlOll-Cj/llllllfifl? 1i, being usual 1 suitableconsti'nclion and arrangement. 5

The features of my invention and which I apply an addition to the pressare n rlrawmft' roller LB and s roller or rm 1 l9 and the parts mountedsaid shaft cons prising a series of arms cerrying'my flexiblescraper-blade 21, a, series of springs 22 independently acting agonnstsaid arms 20 and a series of stoparms 23 which are utilized at theproper time to hold the arms 20 and blade 21 in their inoperativeposition illustrated. by dctted'lincs in Fig, 2, the solid lines in 2representing; the operative position. oi the scraper-blade W and its noacting parts. The operative osition of the scraper-blade21 and'draw-o"?roller 18 for cleaning the press is shown in Fig. 1.

The arms 20 are, each in itself, rigid throughout and each of said armsis formed with a ring or collar 24 closely encompassing but free on theroller 01' shaft 19. Each of the collars 241 has laterally projectingarms 25, 26 which serve to space them from Substantially correspondingcollar-s or bands 27 carrying and being integral with the stop arms 23,which alternate with the arms 20, as shown in Fig. 3. The arms 26 alsoserve as bearings for the lower portions of the springs 22 which areflexed around the" shaft 19 and confined in part by said arms 26. Thearms 20 in their upper portions are ofgoose-ncck formation and providedwith upwardly inclined l1eads28 slitted laterally to create jaws forreceiving the blade 21, and said 20 are providedabopposits sides withlaterally extending pins 29 against which the upper ends oi the springs22 are flexed to enable them, when the arms 20 are otherwise released,to turn arms and the scrapei blade 21" from their ino erstive position,shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, to their operative position illustratedby solid lines in Figs. 1 and 2, thereby setting the edge of thescraperblsde 21 against the dravwod' roller 18.

The collars or bands 27 of the stop arms are feathered on the shaft 19and also fastened thereto by screws 3O,

and said arms are made use of for turning the arms 20 from their openstive to their inoperative position and maintaining them at suchinoperative posi tion. The springs 22 normally press against the pins 29t o turn the arms 2!) forwardly iLOV/H1Ciil18 roller 18 and the arms onllic naming of the roller or shaft 19 to client that result are cuiisedto move against the pins at the sides llllll opposite to those engagedby the springs and thereby in opposition the force oil said springs turnthe arms upwardly to car the blade from the roller 18, llpon :tation ofin s directhe shaft or roller 19 downws;

tion toward the roller 18, the arms turn from the pins 29 and allow thesprings 22 to turn the collars 2% on the shaft 19 and move the arms 20toward the roller 18; The dollars 2? are formed with cars 31 throughwhich ins 32 are passed with their ends projecting laterally beyond thecollers, as shown in Fig. 3, and servin as bearings to confine the lowerportions 0? the springs 22 against the shaft 19, the pins 32 tbu scooperating with the arms 26 in maintaining the springs 22 inoperativerelation to the other "features of the attachment.

The shaft or roller 19 may be turned downwardly in s direction towardthe roller 18 manually or by any suitable means, and saidshaft or roller19 may be given a reverse movement to carry the stop arms 23 against thepins 29 of the arms 20 manually orby any suitable means.

The drawbfi roller 18 is preferably mounted between a pair of pivotedArms 33 "so that it may be free from the adjacent -,roller 15 when thepress is in operation for printing purposes and it is not desired toclean the same. When, however, it is desired to clean the rollers of thepress the roller 18 will. be moved into engagement with the adjacentroller 15 so that the geerwheels 34:, 35 on said rollers may interineshand the roller 18 be driven frolntbc said roller 15 or the drivingmechanism of the press. The roller 18 will preferably be of the printersroller composition, but it may be of some other suitable substancehaving a yielding surface adapted to take the ink and solvent from theadjacent roller 15 during the cleaning of the rollers of the press.

When the rollers of the press are to be cleaned the ink-supplying roller17' will be moved out of-operation and the draw-0E 1 roller 18 movedagainst the adjacent roller 15, and thereupon the shaft or roller19-will i by the draw-of roller 18 from which thecolor and solvent willbe constantly re moved by the scraper blade 21, said color and solventpassing from said blade to a suitable trough 36 and thence to a suitablereceiving receptacle 3?. The constant removal. of the color and solventby the blade 21 enables the roller 18 tobecome a drawotl roller and thepoint of discharge for all of the ink and solvent from all of the trainof rollers or connected inked surfaces. The

rollers of the press will become very ranidl'v while they are omit-hepress, and my'inven- I -21 would be the only movable partsof the tion isparticularly adapted for this purpose, but the features of my inventionare also applicable for use in separate roller-washing machines to whichthe rollers removed from the ress are delivered, and in such use of mymvention the scraper-blade 21 may be applied directly to the printersroller, but

' preferably it will be applied to a draw-off toward the roller to becleane roller corresponding with the roller 18 engaged by the printersroller.

In the patents hereinbefore referred to as havin been granted to me isdescribed a flexibe scraper blade. The blade disclosed in said patentsis held at its shank portion throughout the entire length of the blade,and hence while flexible in a sense does not possessthe flexibility ofthe present blade 21 which is held by the spaced apart arms 20independently acted on by springs 22, whereby said arms 20 becomeindependently yieldable and enable the blade 21 to bend across its widthat points along its length at which irregularities of surface of theroller 18 may be presented to the blade. The ethciency of the cleaningattachment is very greatly enhanced by securing the blade 21 toindependently yielding'arms s ring-pressed d? The irregularities ofsurface in the roller 18 are usually hardly perceptible to the eye andapparently non-preventable in -the manufacture of the roller, and ascraper-blade to be efiicient in the cleaning of the printers rollersmust be able to delicately and positively conform to the irregularitiesof surface presentation of the draw oif roller, to accomplish whichresult is the purpose of my present invention. The blade 21 is veryflexible, and it is held at spaced-apart points by independent springielding members, so that said blade along te line of its length mayyield in sect-ionsfo conform to the surface of the drawofi' roller, oruniformly yield bodily in a direction from the said roller should theirregularity of surface be caused by a strai ht line eccentricity of thecomposition on tic stock or shaft of the roller, or yield to takechangeable slanting line positions should the stock or shaft of theroller not be concentric and parallel with the roller or should the saidshaft be concentric with the be permanently in or one ofthe .the surfaceof the roller:

roller,- but be thrown out of true in its bear I ings b bei worn more atone end than at the ot er en or by the bearin for one end of said shaftbeing more worn than the bearing-for the other end thereof.

I do not limit my invention to the details of form and constructionpresented. V

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters-Patent, is:

1. For cleaning printers rollers, a flexible scraper-blade to extend thelength of a roller, a series of spaced-apart arms carrying said bladeand independently movable,-

at right angles to the longitudinal plane thereof, and afseries ofindependent} springs acting against said arms to yieldingly' hold a.

the blade against the roller and permit the' blade to follow the surfaceof the roller,

2. For cleaning printers rollers, a transfer roller for drawing of? theforeign matter blade to be applied to said transfer or drawofi' roller,a series of independent arms carfrom the printers roller, a flexiblescraperj ryingsaid blade, and a series of independent I springsyieldintgly acting against said arms to hold the bla e against thedraw-cit roller and permit said. blade to yield and follow 3. Forcleaning printers rollers, a transfer roller for drawing ofithe foreignmatter from the printers roller, a flexible scrap-err blade to beapplied to said transfer or drawoff roller, a series of independent armscar v rying said'blade, springs yieldingly act ng against said arms tohold the blade against the draw-off roller and permit said blade toyield and follow the surface of the roller,-

and means for positively moving said arms in opposition to the'force ofsaid springs to carry said blade from the draw-off roller.

1. For cleaning printers rollers, a transfor roller for drawing ed theforeign matter i from the printers roller, a flexible scraperblade to beapplied to said transfer or drawofi' roller, 2. rock-shaft, a series ofindependent spaced-apart arms freely mounted on said shaft and carryingsaid scraper-blade a series of springs pressing against said arms foryieldingly applying the blade to the roller, and a series of stops rigidwith said shaft and alternating with said arms for moving said arms andsaid scraper-blade in opposition to the force of said springs to aninoperative position.

Signed at New York city, in the county of New York and State of NewYork,this 20th .day of June A. D. 1912.

SaldUilL canine ARTHUR Minion.

